THE MUPPETS - On the midseason premiere at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 2, Miss Piggy, garbed in a South American poncho, returns from a therapeutic trip to Argentina a gentler, friendlier and more tolerant version of herself, a change that attracts notice from a more receptive Kermit. (ABC/Andrea McCallin)MISS PIGGY less

THE MUPPETS - On the midseason premiere at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 2, Miss Piggy, garbed in a South American poncho, returns from a therapeutic trip to Argentina a gentler, friendlier and more tolerant version of ... more

Photo: Andrea McCallin / ABC

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THE MUPPETS - Hoping to jazz up her late-night show, Miss Piggy channels Miley Cyrus down to the foam finger she brandished on MTV.

THE MUPPETS - Hoping to jazz up her late-night show, Miss Piggy channels Miley Cyrus down to the foam finger she brandished on MTV.

Photo: Andrea McCallin / ABC

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THE MUPPETS - Miss Piggy goes in for Miley Cyrus braids, foam finger and, yes, twerking on the Feb. 2 return of the show on ABC.

THE MUPPETS - Miss Piggy goes in for Miley Cyrus braids, foam finger and, yes, twerking on the Feb. 2 return of the show on ABC.

Photo: Andrea McCallin / ABC

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THE MUPPETS - "Swine Song" - The whole crew just returned from hiatus, and everyone is rested, recharged and ready to get back to work on the return of 'The Muppets' on ABC.

THE MUPPETS - "Swine Song" - The whole crew just returned from hiatus, and everyone is rested, recharged and ready to get back to work on the return of 'The Muppets' on ABC.

Photo: Andrea McCallin / ABC

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Kermit and Piggy reunite in a fun and sentimental duet on the revamped 'Muppets.'

Kermit and Piggy reunite in a fun and sentimental duet on the revamped 'Muppets.'

Photo: Nicole Wilder / ABC

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THE MUPPETS - Key & Peele guest on the midseason debut of 'The Muppets' on ABC.

THE MUPPETS - Key & Peele guest on the midseason debut of 'The Muppets' on ABC.

Photo: Nicole Wilder / ABC

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THE MUPPETS - "Swine Song" - The whole crew just returned from hiatus, and everyone is rested, recharged and ready to get back to work. But when a new branding guru (Utkarsh Ambudkar) comes in to revamp "Up Late," the gang rallies together and realizes that they don't need gimmicks and hijinks; they just need each other. less

THE MUPPETS - "Swine Song" - The whole crew just returned from hiatus, and everyone is rested, recharged and ready to get back to work. But when a new branding guru (Utkarsh Ambudkar) comes in to revamp "Up ... more

Photo: Nicole Wilder / ABC

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THE MUPPETS - Miss PIggy does her part to save the penguins by stowing one away in her tote bag and naming her Gloria Estefan.

THE MUPPETS - Miss PIggy does her part to save the penguins by stowing one away in her tote bag and naming her Gloria Estefan.

Photo: Nicole Wilder / ABC

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THE MUPPETS - Will Miss Piggy and Kermit the Frog rekindle their romance? Some hints to that effect can be found on the Feb. 2 return of the show on ABC.

THE MUPPETS - Will Miss Piggy and Kermit the Frog rekindle their romance? Some hints to that effect can be found on the Feb. 2 return of the show on ABC.

Photo: Bob D\'Amico / ABC

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Piggy's trip to Manu country softens her and Kermit notices

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SAN ANTONIO – It took a trip to Manu Ginobili country – Argentina – during the holidays to turn Miss Piggy into a kinder, gentler version of herself.

You’ll see the changes in the revamped return of “The Muppets” at 7:30 tonight on ABC-TV.

But don’t worry, Piggy fans!

She’s still the crazy narcissist you’ve loved for years, just a softer-spoken, more tolerant version, one that – yes! – Kermit could fall for again.

That’s right. The chemistry between frog and pig is revived again in the first episode when the two sing a duet on Piggy’s late-night show — “In Spite of Ourselves,” by folk artist John Prine.

Sadly, Piggy didn’t run into our beloved Ginobili during her restorative trip to his homeland.

However, she does bring back a pet penguin in a tote bag that she names Gloria Estefan.

In any event, the series’ new showrunner Kristin Newman seems to have succeeded in infusing “The Muppets” with, as she promised at a recent ABC cocktail party, “more joy, more heart, more of the classic feel of ‘The Muppets.’ ”

Some changes:

A human villain arrives at the network in the form of a branding guru named Pache (Utkarsh Ambudkar, “The Mindy Project”). So now, Newman explained, the Muppets have an antagonist – other than Piggy – to fight against. . .together.

Pache has all kinds of slick changes in mind for her late-night show that are just awful, such as a young YouTube celeb coming in as co-host.

Fortunately, Kermit and his cohorts come up with their own show improvements, such as using the Muppets on the show more – in cooking segments, musical numbers, updated classic “Muppets” sketches and more.

Also: Comic duo Key & Peele guest star on the midseason opener and convince a paranoid Piggy to channel Miley Cyrus for more impact. . .and to Kermit’s chagrin, she does just that.

Her transformation — complete with blonde braids, a foam finger straight out of Cyrus’ gig on the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards and, yes, twerking — is a real giggle.